On 13 March, HK SFC fined Deutsche Bank HK$8.3mn for short sales. Fined Deutsche Bank and its wholly-owned subsidiary Deutsche Securities Asia. Re short position reports, unlicensed activities and segregation of client money. Short Positions Breach of reporting requirements, led to a failure to report 792 short positions. Short position at close of trading on…

On 5 March 2018, HK SFC publicly criticized Nomura on takeover research. Criticized Nomura International (HK) Limited, for breaches of HK takeover code. Also cited Lee Yuen Yee, whilst acting as financial adviser to West China Cement. Lee is a licensed representative of Nomura Hong Kong, for the regulated activity. Work done in relation to…

On 8 February, HK SFC fined Credit Suisse $39.3mn for regulatory breach. Followed self-reporting of breaches, agreed independent reviews, and investigation. Failures in segregating client securities, and reporting direct business transactions. Complying with short selling, electronic trading requirements, contract note rules. Failures in internal controls to ensure suitable investment products sold to customers. Co-operation expedited…

On 31 October, SEC fined Millennium $300k for short sales pre-offerings. Millennium Management LLC agreed to pay over $630,000 to settle SEC charges. Alleged Violations Company violated the anti-manipulation provisions of the federal securities laws. Firm shorted US stocks in companies which were planning for follow-on offerings. After shorting, the firm then illegally bought the…

On 23 October, FCA issued £35mn fine to Merrill Lynch for EMIR failings. Fined Merrill Lynch International £34,524,000 for breach of Principle 3, Art 9 EMIR. MLI agreed to settle at an early stage and qualified for the 30% Stage 1 discount. Without the discount, FCA would have imposed a financial penalty of £49,320,000. MLI…

On 22 June 2017, SEC fined ex- ITG managing director $100k re ADR oversight. Anthony Portelli, ex-head of operations, agreed to settle charges, pay $100k fine. He is also prohibited from acting in a supervisory capacity for at least 18 months. Supervised securities lending, and compliance with ADR pre-release agreements. Staff failed to take steps…